the record with the jumping jacks? >> we don't know. 24 hours just passed. it's going to be months before we know whether they were actually able to get over the 20, 500 mark. >> we'll if she's able to do it. thank you. thank you for watching me. now, passing things off to wolf blitzer. situation room starts now. happening now, a failed entrepreneur, a victim of violent crime, now a suspect in an international terror plot. we're learning h new details about the man charged with plotting to assassinate the saudi ambassador to the united states. also, the probe into a controversial gun running program now escalating with a subpoena targeting the u.s. attorney general, eric holder. and herman cain is blasted by his rivals over a so-called 999 tax plan. we'll show you what it would really do. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room."

-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com we're following new developments in the alleged iranian terror plot to assassinate the saudi ambassador to the united states. among the latest, the u.s. has slapped sanctions on an iranian airline it says provided materials support for the plot. in tehran, the foreign ministry is protesting the allegations to a swiss diplomat in tehran. switzerland represents the two countrie countries. saudi officials are blasting iran over the plot. prince turkey, the former saudi intelligence chief, the former chief in washington warning, i'm quoting, someone in iran is going to have to pay the price. we're also digging deeper into the american citizen charged in the case. lisa siylvester has been

investigating. >> the 56-year-old is the man investigators say is at the center of this plot and authorities are describing him as ruthless, unconcerned about killing innocent people, but his closest friends say they have a hard time making sense of this. they described the guy they know as a nice guy, someone who's disorganized, forgetful and incapable of being a master mind of this kind of plot. he went by the name jack accord tog a friend of his prodescribes him as a r normal guy. >> he didn't care about what happened with government. that's why i found it very shocking to see he was you know, accused of doing this. >> he lived a relatively quiet life. in the early 1980s, he attended texas a and i university, but dropped out there. he tried his hand as small business man.

at one point, he co-owned this small car lot in texas. he also owned a restaurant in a local mall. an investigative reporter interviewed some of his colleagues. they said money was his main driver. >> he was always looking for the deal. just a money hound. they said there's just in their minds, no question that he when ever he put himself into, it was to make money. that there was no ideology, no jihad. there was not abstract about it. it was just money. >> his home was up for foreclosure sale in september 2010. court records show some business disputes and an irs lean from 2003 for $5800, but a former college roommate said he was the victim of a violent mugging in the 1980s and fra that, he had

short-term memory issues for most of his adult life. friends say he moved back to iran in 2010 and didn't hear much from him or about him until they turned on the news and started seeing the reports. we should say also that rick spru has done a great job digging up these details, but we're really getting a sense of who this guy is. >> sounds like a strange guy with a lot of history. thanks very much. let's continue our discussion with peter king. the chairman of the house

homeland security committee. how good is this evidence. >> in from all i've seeb seen, it's extremely solid evidence. i've had a meeting this afternoon with fbi, and i would say that the accumulation of evidence to me seems to be overwhelming. no doubt from what i've heard that this was a very serious plot and that he was the center of it and without going into detail, i would say that the case is very strong and i have no reason to dispute it. obviously, there will be a trial and proceedings, but from all i've seen so far, this is very effective law enforcement, and all the components of our national security team. including again, interrogation groups within the fbi and counterterrorism center, all of who did an outstanding job. >> how high do you believe based

on what you've heard from authorities, did this go in the iranian government? >> well, without going into a briefing, just looking at the public record, the fact is, the force is a lead operation to contemplate an attack of this magnitude, to be actually carrying out attacks and murders and bombings in the united states. this violates all international law. it would have been an act of war if carried out, so i have to believe that lead forces that this would not have been done unless it was sanctioned by the highest of the forces and i can't imagine they would sanction it unless they have been given the sign off by people higher up in the sign off, perhaps all the way to the top. but again, that is just based on my analysis of the public record and common sense cht this is different from anything. i can't emp sis that enough. to have an act of war carried

out in the united states by iran. and that's what this contemplated to me. this is serious business and i can't imagine so many at any lower or middle or upper middle level carrying this out without authority from on high. >> because administration officials have suggested that high elements, but have not said the president ahminedjad was responsible or knew about this. have you heard something different about these two individuals? >> no, wolf, what i'm saying is just looking at the record, it's hard to believe that this isn't do very high. if not to the top, just below. i learned -- this is just my analysis of knowing that it was within the force, knowing how their chain of command work, that i can't believe an attack

of this magnitude involve this much money, all the money transfers that had to occur. just the enormity of it. attacking country embassies, potentially murdering hundreds of americans and killing a foreign ambassador on american soil. >> is it your sense that this operation was in fact even though it was not successful, an act of war? >> i would consider this to be an act of war, certainly if it would have been carried out. and conspireing to carry out war as a practical matter is no difference. i don't really see the distinction, but i think we have to as a country, realize that. there's a red line. we are now in a different level of our relationship with iran than before and we have to rethink really all of our thought process up till now.

i don't think anyone really contemplated at this stage, iran would be willing to contemplate an act of war. this has to somewhat you know, pushing a button. this has to force us i believe to plan very differently and assume the worse from iran. >> when you say plan very differently, the administration is ratcheting up sanctions. are you suggesting military action is appropriate? >> the president's the commander in chief. i think we certainly should very seriously contemplate removing the iranian agents from the united nations, the representatives here in washington because very often, elements of their missions or their representatives are involved in espionage. i think we send a strong signal if we remove all staff at u.n. and here in washington, order them out of the country as soon as possible. >> based on what you know, how

do we know this individual, this suspect in this case, was not just some individual who made up all these stories, was telling this informant what was going on. just simply seeking to make some money, but really didn't have any direct contact with high elements in iran. >> first of all, there's no way this could have been done without high elements. secondly, there is an accumulation of evidence which backs up our confirms what he has admitted to. there's just talking about the amounts of money involved. to have that type of money transferred. how it was done. how sophisticated that had to be and to get that over here or get it to mexico. no, this was not a work of someone who's delusional, not someone making it up. this was again, this was very sophisticated plot and had to go

beyond one person and xwen again, there's enough, more than enough to confirm virtually everything he's saying. >> we'll see what happens in the courtroom. on the second part of this allegation, this alleged plot, the blowing up, the attack on saudi and israeli embassies here in washington, how advanced was that? how serious was that part of the story? >> i would say it was very serious. certainly very seriously contemplated and i took it very seriously. >> could you elaborate a little bit? the other allegation was they also talked about blowing up the embassy at buenos aires. >> i would say all three. in washington, saudi, all i would say -- i would take it very seriously. >> one final question and i read about it on my blog.

why the 49-year-old saudi ambassador? a graduate of georgetown university. what's in it for the iranian? >> he's the ambassador to the most high pro file country of the world and you know him, we know him, he's extremely prominent here in washington. why he's not a member of the saudi royal family, he certainly moves in the circles and this would have had a devastating personal impact if he had been killed and also would have sent a strong message to the saudis that the iranian are coming after them and that as we go through the whole situation with the arab spring, this would be a strong signal to the saudis to stay out. not to be getting involved in other countries such as syria, whatever, so this is a -- i think this was a decision made by iran to send a strong signal to the saudis, extremely strong

signal, and also the fact they'd be willing to do it in the united states just shows, would show the saudis and others how serious the iranian were and how they were willing to stop at nothing. i think it was clearly thought out. you and i might think it was erratic behavior, irresponsible behavior, but i think they were trying to send a clear signal, yes, they can be irresponsible, but they know what they're doing. >> peter king is the chairman of the house homeland security committee. thanks for coming in. >> thank you. >> let's point out the iranian government has flatly denied these allegations, totally disputing what the obama administration is alleging. a subpoena targeting -- gun running op rag, now, it's getting personal. plus, more on the alleged iranian plot to assassinate the saudi ambassador to the united

states. we'll have the treasury department's top expert, top official on terrorism who will join us live. >> we have taken very strong steps to ensure that -- ♪ ♪ ♪ when the things that you need ♪ ♪ come at just the right speed, that's logistics. ♪ ♪ medicine that can't wait legal briefs there by eight, ♪ ♪ that's logistics. ♪ ♪ freight for you, box for me box that keeps you healthy, ♪ ♪ that's logistics. ♪ ♪ saving time, cutting stress, when you use ups ♪ ♪ that's logistics. ♪ [ siren ] [ applause ] [ jackhammer ] [ crowd cheering ] [ speeding car ] [ siren ]

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jack cafferty is here. >> here's just one more sign that president obama's in deep trouble heading into a re-election year. the democrat controlled senate has failed to pass the president's job bill. the senate voted 50-49 against the $447 billion package falling far short of the 60 votes needed to pass. president obama's been barn storming the country promoting this thing, but it didn't make any difference. not a single republican voted for the jobs bill, not a surprise, i suppose, but even worse, two democrat senators up for re-election in conservative states voted against it. president obama insists this isn't the end of the road for the jobs bill. he's vowing now to praek it into

smaller packages and have congress vote on eep of these one at a time. some of the popular elements include a tax cut and the extension of unemployment benefit, but it's far from certain that a bitterly divided congress will pass any of it. republicans call the whole thing a political stunt. they say obama's jobs bill is nothing more than another failed stimulus plan. meanwhile, democrats up for re-election will have to decide soon whether or not to stand by this president. experts tell reuters that at least a few dozen democrats might duck president obama in 2012 since unpopular presidents traditionally hurt their party in congress. it's early and that number could go up or down depending on a couple of other numbers. mr. obama's approval rating now in the low hows. and the nation's unemployment rate stuck at over 9%. here's the question -- go to

cnn.com/caffertyfile, post a comment or go to our post on our facebook page. >> thank you. meanwhile, the congressional probe into a controversial atf gun running program is escalating and now, it's getting personal. the latest twist. a subpoena directly targeting eric holder. brian todd has been working the story for us. what happened today? >> the lead congressional investigator now wants holder to hand over key documents on fast and furious, specifically sensitive communications at the very top levels. congressional investigators are zeroing in like never before on what eric holder knew about the fast and furious gun tracking program and when he knew it. a new subpoena from the house oversight and government reform committee to the justice department demands records of communications on fast and furious between the attorney general, his chief of staff and the head of the department's criminal division. the subpoena requests

information on the probe into the murder last december of brian terry. and the committee wants correspondence between holder's office and the white house. the lead investigatorer on the committee has accused holder and his aides of stone walling him. >> we don't get cooperation as many people even when we do a subpoena, we get overly redacted documents. this is not the most transparent administration at least in some areas. >> holder denies stone walling issa's committee. >> we have sent thousands of pages of documents up to the hill. i'm sure we will undoubtedly comply with them. >> and holder has disputed claims that justice department mem o show he knew about fast and furious. inves gators say federal law enforcement let thousands of assault rifles and other weapons get into the hands of suspected drug and weapons traffickers.

the program was supposed to take down those operations, but the weapons wound up at murder scenes. a letter implied that -- issa fired back questioning holder's competence and credibility and saying you own fast and furious. >> darrell issa is getting personal. when he says to holder, you own this scandal, i've lost confidence in your credibility as attorney general. he's really getting personal and he's trying to get a rise out of holder. what happens in this town when it gets personal like that? >> it doesn't look good for either guy if they take the bait. >> this is likely to boil down to when eric holder knew of the clus crucial details, the tactics. he said he dbt know about those until this spring. those memos to holder cited by issa don't have a lot of detail in them, but issa complains those were redacted. >> what did the aides know?

>> issa claims the aides knew about this program and details of it as early as march of last year. justice officials have denied that saying they were not briefed on the tactics of it. this is going to be a nasty fight for probably months to come. >> and you'll be all over it. a surprise today at the trial of the accused christmas day bomber. you're going to hear how the man charged with attempting to blow up a device in his underwear shocked the courtroom and why warren buffett is now telling the world how much he made last year. can you imagine saying a federal tax bill of almost $7 million is not enough? [ cellphone rings ] cut! [ monica ] i have a small part in a big movie. i thought we'd be on location for 3 days, it's been 3 weeks. so, i used my citi simplicity card to pick up a few things. and i don't have to worry about a late fee. which is good... no! bigger! bigger! [ monica ] ...because i don't think we're going anywhere for a while. [ male announcer ] write your story with the new citi simplicity card. no late fees. no penalty rate. no worries.

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a courtroom surprise in the trial of the alleged christmas day bomber. what happened, lisa? >> it is a big surprise. the man accused of trying the bring down an airliner on christmas day in 2009 by detonating a bomb in his underwear pleaded guilty today to all the charges against him. umar farouk abdulmutallab had pleaded not guilty to charges. he will be sentenced july 12th. billionaire warren buffett is revealing what he made last year.

stepping up his push to get congress to raise taxes on the very rich. he says he made almost $63 million last year and that his federal tax bill was a little more than 17% of his taxable income. it's a low percentage because a lot of his money came from investments, which are taxed at a lower rate than wages. and if you are a man over the age of 60 taking vitamin e supplements, researchers say you need to talk to your doctor. there's a new study that shows too much can increase your risk of prostate cancer. men taking 18 times the recommended daily amount had a higher cancer risk. of course had to be taking 18 times that, so that's a lot. >> way too much. you said july 12th. it's january 12th. >> if i did, i misspoke. glad you corrected that.

>> thank you. we'll have much more on our top story coming up. the u.s. is laying out its case. did the highest levels of iran's government know about the plot? and herman cain under the spotlight with his so-called 999 plan. would his plan actually be able to restructure the tax code? would it really work? chloe is 9 months old.

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harsh words for iran today after revelations of an alleged plot to assassinate the saudi ambassador to the united states. perhaps at the expense of lots of innocent americans. the house speaker john boehner this afternoon called it a serious breach of international behavior. joe biden warning the u.s. response could move beyond diplomatic sanctions. let's bring in jessica yellin.

the white house press secretary was peppered with questions. what did we learn? >> he called it an attempted act of terrorism. u.s. would ratchet up pressure on iran, but what was most interesting was what he would not say. whether this reached to the highest levels of the iranian government, to the se preem leader and president. >> the united states disrupted a conspiracy to assassinate a ambassad ambassador. clearly, the plotting of this attempted assassination happened at senior levels of the quds force. beyond that, i can't get more specific, but ksh -- believe it's clear that senior levels of the quds force were engaged in the plotting. >> the administration emp siss the quds forces are deeply tied

to the iranian government, but noteworthy they wouldn't make that tie. >> what are you learn iing abou the timing of this announcement yesterday? >> well, this is interesting, wolf. you'll remember the suspect in custody, arbabsiar, was arrested on the 29th. that's just days after the release of those american hikers arrested and held in iran for more than two years. now, when asked about this timing, jay carney said that's just a doins dense. >> maybe it is. let's dig deeper with david cohen. the undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. he's joining us from the white house. thanks very much for coming in. do you believe the grand ayatollah of iran knew about this plot? >> well, wolf, as jay kearney said earlier today, what we know is that this is a plot that was undertaken by the quds force, by

senior quds force officials and in the designations that the treasury department announced yesterday, we also made clear that the head of the quds force is responsible for what the quds force undertakes. beyond that, wolf, i really don't have any other comment on who else in iran may have known about it and been responsible. >> so, you can't say whether ahminedjad, the president, knew about this because in your treasury department announcement yesterday, you included elements of the quds force, but none of the political leaders of iran. >> right. the designation we did yesterday described the role of the quds force, which is an important element of the islamic revolutionary guard core, which is sort of the premier military operation inside iran. the quds force responsible for external terrorist operations outside of iran. it's a very important organization within the

government of iran, but the information that we have relates to the quds force and the quds force's role in supervising around organizing this plot. >> any plans to raise these sanctions beyond these individuals? beyond the iranian airline that you sanctioned today to go to the central bank for example of iran and say that any country having any commercial dealings with iran at all would be suggest to u.s. sanctions? >> well, the sanctions that we announced today on air as well as the sanctions that we announced yesterday on these quds force officers are a part of a long standinging effort by the administration to expose the quds force and the irgc's role in elicit activity. we are going to continue to look for ways to expose that, to increase the pressure on iran.

i'm not going to speculate about what our next steps may be, but we are proceeding down the path we've been on, which is to continue to ratchet up the pressure on iran in particular until it reigns in its international terrorist activity and also is willing to engage with the international community in a meaningful way with respect to its nuclear program. >> as you well know, a lot of countries, not only russia and china, but many european countries have good commercial dealings. several countries in the middle east do as well. you're not ready to ratchet up that sanction level and say any country that deals with the central bank of iran will not be dealing with the united states. >> the reality is the extent to which countries in europe, russia, china, you name it are involved with commercial activity with iran is

decreasing. the iranian economy is in stagnating. they are increasingly isolated and largely in part because of the sanctions that we and others around the world including the u.n. and e.u. have aplied to the irgc. is to truth is that the commercial activity that countries around the world are engaged in with iran is decreasing. >> how did they manage allegedly to transfer $100,000 from iran to this bank account that was suppose dri under the control of arbabsiar, but was actually controlled by the fbi? >> well, as the complaint that was unsealed yesterday made clear, there was a two financial transfers from a third country bank. so a noniranian bank into the united states. there was also money provided to arbabsiar in iran.

the particular transmission network is something we are continuing to unravel. but the important point for your viewers to understand and for banks to understand is that the bank that was involved in transferring that $100,000 from the third country to the united states was not an iranian bank. it was a bank in a third country. that has now found itself involved in helping to facilitate a international state sponsored murder for hire plot. and it really points up the risk that any bank that is involved in financial tran sakses with iran runs. which is that if you're going to expose yourself to the iranian financial market, you can find yourself unwittingly involved in iranian behooifr, whether it's state sponsored terrorism or support for their nuclear program or other sorts of

nefarious behavior. >> which third country? which bank was involved? >> wolf, i can't go into that. >> why not? >> because that is both a matter of intelligence and it's part of the ongoing law enforcement investigation. >> is it a friendly county to the united states or not so friendly. >> good try, wolf, but i can't get into it. >> maybe i'm missing something, but it's going to come out i assume if there's a trial in this case, is that right? >> it may. but at this point, the investigation is ongoing and i'm not at liberty to discuss it. >> there are skeptics saying this individual, mr. arbabsiar, may have been desperate for money and he was just making up all this and got you guys to go along with him and you're blowing this way out of proportion and you know all the allegations are being firmly denied by the iranian government. >> that's no surprise that the iranian are denying this, but i can assure you, wolf, that

before the justice department is prepared to bring the charges they brought and before the treasury department was prepared to do the designations we did yesterday that we looked long and hard at the evidence here and were persuaded that this was a real plot that involved the quds force. involved mr. arbabsiar trying to recruit some mexican drug cartel to conduct this operation. and that as i said, the head of the quds force in his role of supervising all of the operations of the quds force was himself responsible as well. >> david cohen,ing us. >> the undersecretary of the it shallry. one suspect is still missing in the plot. who is he and is he still a threat? that's coming up, plus, a high stakes debate for rick perry is

closely watched after his last debate flop. how did he do? that's coming up in our "strategy session."

herman cain has made a surge in the polls lately. he found himself in the hot seat last night. his fellow candidates took aim in particular at a so-called 9-9-9 plan to try to restructure the tax code. tom, the other candidates, the republican candidates, they really went after him. >> yeah, it was, wolf, welcome to the big league, mr. cain. quite an attack. listen to some of the things they said about his plan and what he said as well. >> one thing i would say is when you take the 9-9-9 plan and turn it upside down, i think the devil's in the details. >> how many people here are for a sales tax in new hampshire. raise your hand. there you go, herman. >> i thought it was the price of a pizza when i first heard it. >> it will replace the corporate income tax, personal income tax, the capital gains tax and payroll tax. >> think about what he said there at the end because that's really key.

the 9-9-9 plan will replace all current sources of revenue. that's what we put to our truth squad in atlanta. terrific team of researchers and what we've come up with is pretty interesting. the basic idea behind this plan is that it would include 9% of three thipgs. flat income tax minus charitiable donations, plus some credit if you're dealing with empowerment zones. basically areas that are struggling economically where he's trying to get some incentive to help out there or open businesses. a 9% business tax minus the money he spent on investments for purchases, dividends paid and a credit for empowerment zones. this gets tricky. once you take out purchases, well, how much is that going to be? what's that going to add up to and then when you add a 9% national sales tax, what's happening is economic analysts

are saying this all gets really murky as to what this adds up to. for example, total expenditures by consumers have dropped for two years in a row, so even if you knew what this would be, it's based on people's behavior. if you had a 9% national sales tax on top of everything you buy, to what degree might we change what we buy and when and if we do, 300 million of us, that's going to affect the bottom line down here. so, the problem when you look at the 9-9-9 plan is that it's like changing everything. it's kind of like saying let's tear up the roads, rewrite the laws and rebuild it. now, what's the speed limit going to be? no one has any idea. what will determine revenue? everyone is saying we don't know. he says it will replace current sources of revenue. we don't know. that's why we have to say until

we know more, this could be true, but mainly, it's incomplete. >> we'll be learning assuming his poll numbers stay high, about this plan. thank you, tom. a global communications crisis for millions of blackberry users. details in our next hour. what's happened to all your messages? stand by. meineke's personal pricing on brakes.

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that's personal pricing. jeb bush is weighing in on the 2012 republican presidential field. he sat down today with piers morgan and says there's one candidate catching his eye. >> i continue to be impressed with mitt romney's performance in these debates. he's cool, calm and collected. quic quick, agile. >> he's consistent, isn't he? >> very consistent and disciplined and all the things you would want in a candidate and other candidates have moments where they're done extraordinarily well as well. >> are you edging towards an endorsement of mitt romney? chris christie came out yesterday. are you prepared to do this? >> i don't have as much weight behind me as chris christie, but i'm getting up there.

i'm going to wait. there's no urgency to this. >> the interview later tonight, 9:00 p.m. tonight. let's talk about this and more. joining us, the democratic strategist, maria and the republican strategist, tony. certainly sounds to me like jeb bush is at least hinting he likes mitt romney enough to follow chris christie in the not too distant future endonsment. >> on the other hand, i think if the republican elite try to quick quote this race, they're going to get a lot of resistance. you're watching cain come up and i don't dismiss him. we washingtonians tend to diss mitt others because they're not part of the washington crowd and newt, my old boss is moving up. i think that there's some

resistance. the 25% romney has, is it the floor or ceiling? floor, he's in great shape. ceiling, he's got a challenge. >> maria? >> i think that romney has been consistent in terms of how he's done on debates, but you know what else he's been consistent on? his flip-flops. it just baffles me on how his opponents and perry had a terrific opportunity to do this, did not go at him where he had several sound bites. the latest in 2008 talking about how he would be happy if the model of his health care plan he passed in massachusetts would be used as a national health care plan. >> it was a big thing in 2008, but since 2008, he's flip-flopped earlier. since then, he's been pretty consistent. >> flip-flopping is the other side of the advantage f

experience. if youf been in the business for 20, 30 years, you've changed positions. if you're just coming to the game, you come away with the popular positions at the moment. he went in with the individual mandate on health care in '93 when the heritage foundation came out. at the time, that was the conservative position against hillary care. as the years pass and as romney has been steady for almost half a decade, the charge of flip-flop is less effective. >> i was surprised about rick perry. because rick perry, this debate was strictly on the economy, on economics. he's coming out with his economic plan later this week, but he could have come out with it earlier so he could have something to point to. were you surprised? >> absolutely, he could have announced it yesterday. he could have announced this it week. that's what herman cain has done. i think rick perry really missed a lot of opportunity.

i still think the flip-flop thing with huge. it really focuses on a politician with zero conviction and that is important to the american people. >> you believe as far as rick perry's concerned it's basically over? >> i think even though he's got 17 million, which is impressive, i think it's over for him and it wasn't just he missed the opportunity to come out with a plan. he said i've only be been at this for eight weeks. it was a terrible thing to say, but when it comes to flip-flops in the general election, everybody including the incumbent has changed positions. >> herman cain going anywhere? you think this is going to be a short lived honeymoon? >> we'll see. last night, it was clearly the romney cain show and herman cain has done a lot. we were talking about this earlier. everyone's talking about 9-9-9. that is a huge win for cain. i think it all depends on what

happens from here on out. but it is very early in the process and having worked for hillary clinton four years ago, it is way too early to say that anybody is the inevitable front-runner. >> not over yet. we have a debate next tuesday night in las vegas, october 18th, the cnn debate. you're going to want to check that out. 8:00 p.m. eastern only here on cnn. iran accused of more than an assassination. you're going to hear how israel is going to respond after the suspects allegedly discussed attacking the israeli embassy in washington.

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jack? >> question this hour, what does it mean for president obama that he can't even get the democrat controlled senate to pass his jobs bill? randy writes -- while their corporate and billionaire masters, the top 1% continue the rape of america. will hem writes -- the bill had many things in it that were originally republican ideas. but they're willing to kill it in an attempt to put one man in washington out of work at the

expense of millions of unemployed nationwide. bob writes -- cliff in new york writes -- in a town that allows filibusters to be texted in from the capital grill while taking special interest contributions, this charade highlights we are a democracy in name only. harriet writes -- and dee writes -- you want to read more on this, go to my blog. or go to the post on "the situation room's" facebook page. wolf? >> thanks very much. happening now, the missing

link within iran's military to an alleged assassination plot on u.s. soil. new information about one of the suspects, an officer in iran's feared quds force. where is he and what proof does the united states have to blame iran? plus, the republican presidential candidates are gearing up for their next presidential debate and at least one of them still has a lot to prove. stand by for the winners and losers of the faceoff on the economy. and a blackberry blackout is spreading around the world. why millions of customers don't have service and when your have service and when your blackberry might work again. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com i'm wolf blitzer, you're in "the situation room." the obama white house says it's keeping all options open to punish iran for an alleged

assassination plot here in the nation's capitol. the obama administration is standing firm in saying that iran must be held accountable for a foiled scheme to kill the saudi ambassador to the united states. the u.s. treasury department announced today that an arraign yan commercial airline has been sanctioned for its ties to iran's quds force. senior members of the guard were behind this alleged plot. the dharm of the house home land security committee representative peter king tells me he believes someone even higher in the iranian regime may have been involved. >> it would be an act of war if it was carried out, so i just have to believe that considering what an elite force this is, this would not have been done unless it was sanctioned by the highest levels of the quds force and i can't imagine they would sanction it unless they had been given the sign off by people higher in government. >> the iranian government lodged

a formal complaint accusing the obama administration of fabricating the entire thing. and an iranian american suspect in the plot is in custody in new york and facing another court date in two weeks. monosor arbabsiar is accused of conspiracy, but a long time friend is describing the former used car sales man as quote, a happy go lucky guy and his estranged wife says she believes he's innocent. >> i cannot fort life of mine, think that he would be cape l of doing that. he was at the wrong place at the wrong time, i'm sure of that and i know that his innocence is going to come out. >> let's bring in brian todd. not only looking at arbabsiar, you're looking at the other suspect named yesterday. >> that's right. that suspect the at large. he is apparently a long waway wy

from the reach of u.s. officials. he could be protected by the powerful and feared iranian military unit and could be very dangerous to western citizens. u.s. officials say manssor arbabsiar was given a code word to kill the ambassador. chevrolet. he was told, buy it, meaning go ahead and kill him. the man who told him that u.s. officials say is an officer in the quds force. he is charged as conspirator, but where is he? >> remains at large. >> at large and experts say very elusi elusive. they say he's probably in tehran, likely a focus on western law enforcement, but for now, out of their reach. >> is there no chance of getting him? >> no, tl a chance. i think the next step would be for the u.s. to issue provisional arrest warrants for him, then go to interpole and

france and submit their package to the attorneys there. >> tom fuentes says then he could be apprehended. they say shakuri is a deputy to one official in the quds force identified as a cousin of arbabsiar. they all allegedly worked for commander of the quds force. under his leadership, experts say, this shadowy, secretive unit, an arm of iran's guard, uses terrorist groups around the world to do its bidding. >> training, army, recruitment, all of them. bombing attacks, use of ieds r assassinations, all of these happen as part of the conflicts in places like lebanon and iraq. >> i asked if western citizens should be worried about shakuri? >> i would think yes because you don't know if this is the only person he was dealing with.

if he has many operatives in various parts of the world or others possibly in the united states, although that seems probably unlikely in this case, you would think he would have responsibility for more than one potential attack. >> tom says that could mean there are other attacks being planned now possibly targeting europe, south america or elsewhere and using different cells of operatives. >> what are you hearing about these suggestions that perhaps this plot was part of some sort of iranian retaliation against the saudis? >> that's right. you blogged about the rivalry of iran. experts are telling us this plot could have been in retaliation for actions during the arab spring. the ruling family is minority, their saudi muslim like the saudis. well, that apparently angered

the iranian, who sided with the shi majority in bahrain and this may have been in retaliation to that. this is a lot of intrigue between the iranian and saudis. >> it's murky. check out my blog. thanks very much. top u.s. lawmakers are being briefed about the plot and why the obama administration is directly blaming iran. republicans are urging the white house to keep the pressure on the tehran government. >> i think it's certainly a hostile act and probably meets that parameter, but whatever definition it is, it's a brazen act attempt to be carried out on american soil and i don't think this administration has made the american people well enough aware of all of the activities. put it in the context of all the activities of the iranian. >> i think this plot is, it's a

very serious breach of international behavior. and i would hope that our administration would hold the iranian government -- and hold their feet to the fire over the actions that have been alleged in this complaint. >> still not clear who if anyone within the highest levels of the iranian government knew about the scheme to murder the saudi ambassador in washington. joe biden says there will be serious consequences for the regime. let's bring in our foreign affairs correspondent, jill daugherty. what's the next step for the obama administration? >> at the state department, they are in overdrive. ambassadors, u.s. ambassadors around the world have been directed to brief the governments of the countries in which they are working about this alleged plot and to urge those governments to join with the united states to pressure iran.

the obama administration's rallying cry right now, isolate iran. >> we will work closely with our international partners to increase iran's isolation and the pressure on its government and we call upon other nations to join us in condemning this threat to international peace and security. >> but why didn't economic sanctions stop iran from allegedly making a down payment on the plot? a treasury department announcement of more sanctions says up to $5 million was approved by a top figure in iran's quds force, part of iran's revolutionary guard corp., to allegedly pay for the plot. the complaint says manssor arbabsiar was able to transfer a total of $100,000 from iran to an unnamed country, from there, to a bank in new york and finally to an account monitored by the fbi.

one expert on iran says it can be done despite of sanctions. >> there are banking sanctions in place against iran and also very broad sanctions. they can use other individuals to transfer relatively small sums of money to the united states. >> an official at the treasury department admits iran is not totally cut off from the international banking system, but they say treasury does not believe the foreign bank knew it was dealing with money for an assassination plot. the top treasury department official admitted on "the situation room" with wolf blitzer that by laundering to a third country, the sanctions were circumvented. >> the particular transmission network is something we are continuing to unravel. >> and u.s. officials say that underscores the risks financial institutions face in dealing with iran. >> we believe that all countries should look hard at how they can tighten sanctions, enforce sanctions and whether sanctions

are well enforced. >> that is why secretary clinton and other top officials here at the state department are are burning up the phone lines talking with the leaders of ore countries and up in new york at the united nations, susan rice is meeting with all of the members of the u.n. security counsel. because the real truth is that on its own at least economically, there really isn't a lot that the united states can do against iran. wolf? >> good point, jill. thanks very much. we may never know why so-called of the iranian regime would want to kill the saudi ambassador to the united states even if the obama administration's claims are proven correct. a lot of unanswered questions in this case. let's bring in our national security contributor, fran townsend, the former bush homeland security adviser. some are already voicing skepticism that the evidence may turn out to be less damming to the highest elements of the iranian government than were

currently suspecting right now. what are you hearing, fran? >> when i speak to law enforcement sources, they say, they've got the direct links into the quds force and you know, bank transfers and the trail of the money is going to be kind of hard to deny for them, but they don't yet have the direct link. the issue really comes down to those of us what have been looking at this issue for the last few decades will tell you the quds force doesn't act independent of the supreme leader. they wouldn't undertake an operation of this magnitude, it's hard to imagine, without having their political leadership approved this. is it possible? anything is, but the focus of the investigation now is on the what is the connection into the political leadership? >> when you heard last night that the the state department was issues yet another worldwide terror alert, warning american citizens to be careful out there, was that time?

was that coincidental or related to this announcement yesterday? >> that was directly related. we know that the quds force in particular, iran nor generally, have used proxies around the world. we've heard a lot over the last 24 hours about the attack in buenos aires against the cultural center and israeli embassy in the early '90s and beirut barricks bombings. there are a number of instances where iran has used terrorism as a tool of their foreign policy. recently, we've heard the information about the quds force and iran using proxies to attack u.s. and coalition fors in iraq. most recently in syria, the quds force has been accused of training syrian forces that are then used against the syrian people. this is a very active organization for the iranian government used to project their power asymmetrically around the world working through proxies so

project violence. >> we're going to learn a lot more about this in the coming days and weeks. thank you. meanwhile, a stunning turn of events in the trial of the so-called underwear bomber. and the deal to free an israeli soldier and more than 1,000 palestinian prisoners. is israel sending the right or wrong message? what's going on? michael orrin is here this hour in "the situation room." ♪ sent her back to college for her sophomore year ♪

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jack? >> it was curious timing, wolf, for the administration to announce the detail of that iranian terror plot yesterday. the news conveniently took the focus off the growing scandal surrounding attorney general eric holder and the federal gun running operation dubbed fast and furious. president obama's reportedly briefed on the supposed terror plot four months ago in june. but the feds chose yesterday to go public with it. when eric holder was asked about being subpoenaed over fast and furious, he quickly ended his

news conference on the terror plot. the story's not going way wa. congressional investigators have issued a subpoena now. they want to get their hands on communications from top justice department official. the head of the house oversight and reform committee, darrell issa of california says quote, it's time to know the whole truth, unquote. issa says holder has made numerous statements about the program that have proven to be untrue. translation? holder's lying. fast and furious allowed illegal guns to walk from anthony a gun stores into mexico. the idea was to track sellers to the mexican drug cartels, but it went terribly wrong when weapons found at mexican and american murder scenes were traced back to the program. in fact, two of those guns linked to fast and furious were found at the scene of a murder of a border patrol agent. holder testified in may that he only found out about the program a few weeks before then, but

republicans point to justice department documents that indicate holder knew about it much, much earlier than that, so, here's the question -- go to cnn.com/caffer cnn.com/caffertyfile, post a comment on my blog or go to our post on our facebook page or write your answer on your bedroom wall. >> thanks very much. meanwhile, a new twist in the case of the 2009 christmas day terror plot here in the united states. which nearly brought down a commercial airliner in -- over detroit. changed airport screening as we know it. here's deborah fayerick. >> in a major surprise on day two of his trial, accused underwear bomber pleaded guilty to all eight charges against him. including conspiracy to commit terrorism and attempted murder.

after a long recess, abdulmutallab replied, i plead guilty to each count red to him by the judge. sounding defiant, he read a statement saying he did it to avenge the death of innocent muslims. i am guilty of this by u.s. law, but not not koran, he said. if you laugh at us now, we will laugh at you later. abdulmutallab's stand by counsel and legal adviser spoke outside the courthouse. >> pleading to something where there's a life sentence is not something i'd recommend. >> it's been nearly two years since the student turned want to be suicide bomber, tried to blow up flight 253 with a bomb in his underwear. is bomb contained petn. prosecutors were pleased with

the outcome. >> there are other options available. there is a military tribunal system, but i believe that the civilian court system is a valid use. it's a good tool in the terrorism tool box. >> passengers aboard the plane were ready to testify him in court. >> he was guilty. put tear in children's eyes. >> he says he put two rows behind abdulmutallab. >> we all made it. >> the underwear bomber now faces life in prison. his sentencing will be in january. we're getting breaking news out of libya. dan rivers is joining us from near gadhafi's hometown. what are you learning? >> we're getting reports that the fifth son of the former leader, has been captured here.

i'm being cautious about this. this is only from one single source that cnn has confirmed with so far, from the revolutionary counsel in tripoli, here on the ground, it's just a big rumor mill i'm afraid. there was a lot of sell bra torre about a half an hour ago when this flashed up on the local tv station attributed to reuters. we're being told he was captured around noon in sert. we've been in the thick of it. we didn't see him being taken out, captured, didn't hear anything either. that's why it's a little perplexing to us here on the ground, but we're being told he was captured around noon and has been taken to benghazi, further to the east. if this is true, clearly, it's a massive boost to moral here. there were rumors swirling around that he was here directing operations, directing

the military operation. he's a senior figure in the former libyan army and served as a national security adviser i believe at one point. if he has been captured, it's a great boost for this battle, driven back to one tiny corner and nowhere to run. >> good to be cautious. there have been other erroneous reports about gadhafi sons being captured. they turned out to be false. we'll stay on top of this story. meanwhile, a syrian born naturalized american citizen is being charged with spying on protesters here in the united states. the suspect who lives in virginia was arrested in connection with alleged conspiracy to collect video and audio recordings demonstrating

dwe against the syrian government. it says he spoke privately with if country's embattled president. all coming amidthe government crackdown. does israel plan to take action for the alleged assassination plot which allegedly targeted its embassy? my interview with michael orrin just ahead. plus, a mass outage plaguing millions of blackberry users in the united states and around the world. we're going to tell you what's behind it. stay with us. ♪ [ male announcer ] we're not employers or employees. not white collar or blue collar or no collars. we are business in america. and every day we awake to the same challenges. but at prudential we're helping companies everywhere find new solutions to manage risk, capital and employee benefits, so american business can get on with business. ♪

anticipation already building right now for the next faceoff among the republican presidential candidates. cnn will host the western republican presidential debate next tuesday, 8:00 p.m. eastern. listen to some of the spars in the debate last night between rick perry and romney. the subject, health care. rick perry pressed mitt romney. >> i question for you would be how would you respond to his

criticism of your signature legislative achievement? >> the great thing about running for president is you get the chance the talk about your experience as governor and i'm proud of the fact we took on a major problem. we have the lowest number of kids uninsured in america. you have the highest. i'm still speaking. i'm still speaking. we have -- we have less than 1% of our kids that are uninsured. you have a million kids uninsured in texas. under president bush, is percentage went down. under your leadership, it's gone up. >> let's bring in gloria borger. i think by all accounts, mitt romney did a good job. >> he did. i'm still speaking. how did you like that? what he did was turned a weakness, which is his massachusetts health care plan, into an attack. when he was asked about it by rick perry, he was very strong about it. i spoke with some republican

strategists today who said it's become clear that if you want someone who can go toe to toe with barack obama in a debate, that it looks more and more like it's mitt romney and again, what was interesting was he admitted that he supported for example the bank bailouts, which is not a popular position among conservatives, but he feels clearly that he's got to admit what he supports and that if they don't like it, they can go somewhere else, but increasingly, it looks like there's tho where else to go and that's why david axelrod of the obama campaign had a conference call with reporters today in which he took on mitt romney. it's clear they've moved from this primary to the general and they think mitt romney is the person they're going to be running against. >> rick perry's performance last night by almost all accounts, not so fabulous. >> well, he needed really to

have a good performance. he didn't have it. testifies given the opportunity to lay out his economic plan and what he did was said, well, i have a plan on energy and then proceeded not to give you the details of his energy plan. so, this is not his best format and what was strange was that he had released a very brutal web ad earlier in the week about mitt romney attacking mitt romney on health care reform and then seemed kind of oddly passive in this debate and let it continue kind of while he sits back. >> and really for the first time, herman cain came under attack. >> he did. his 9-9-9 plan, which we heard over 20 times being mentioned. 9% personal tax rate, 9% national sales tax. republicans don't like a national sales tax. they don't believe the personal tax rate is going to be contained to 9%.

i think herman cain is now in a different tier and he's got to be able to handle these attacks better than he did last night. he also cant say things like i have no facts to back this up, but. he has to start having the facts, so we'll see how he does in las vegas. >> next tuesday night, 8:00 p.m. millions of blackberry users around the world are victims now to a mass three-day service outage, but now, some possible, possible good news. let's bring in our silicon valley correspondent, dan simon. what's the latest? >> well, first of all, this has been a problem of the highest magnitude for rim, the maker of blackberry. it appears that service is being restored to some users here in the united states, but the company has yet to put out a statement saying that the problem is over. we should tell you that at this point, they say they don't know what the problem is.

they know there's some kind of issue with its key infrastructure, but hasn't said what caused this outage. i want you to listen to what a senior manager said today. >> we fully understand the frustration our customers are feeling with the delays of messaging. i'd like to apologize to our customers experiencing these problems. the service issue, we're treating with the yut most urgency. >> well, looks like service is coming back online again for some users here in the united states, but this has been a pr nightmare for this company as we all know, rim has suffered severe declines in user base. they're losing to android system and apple with the iphone. the iphone releasing a new version coming on friday and if people are on the fence, they might be thinking twice about purchasing another blackberry product. >> a nightmare for blackberry, but certainly for millions of people who don't have their

e-mail service. thanks very much. when we come back, the israeli ambassador to the united states, michael oren, will talk about this alleged iranian plot to blow up the israeli embassy here in washington. nothing helped me beat arthritis pain. until i tried this. it's salonpas. pain relief that works at the site of pain... up to 12 hours. salonpas.

this just coming in. the republican presidential candidate rick perry, he's just commented on the alleged iranian plot to assassinate saudi arabia's ambassador to the united states. listen to what rick perry said in indiana. >> iran again has demonstrated how its engagement in the world community consists of plotting violence and terror against its neighbors and its critics, unfortunately, this is all too often business as usual for iran. we saw with their, what their dictators would do to their own

people during the green revolution. we've seen what iran does with impunity to its friends -- particularly i should say not their friends, but the friends of america. when i think about israel. how they sew the seeds of mayhem and instability in the middle east. >> governor perry went on to say the united states an its allies cannot allow iran to develop or secure nuclear weapons. u.s. officials say saudi ambassador was not the only target of the plot. they say the suspects discussed attacking the israeli and saudi embassies here in washington and possibly in buenos aires, argentina, as well. joining us is michael oren. thanks very much for coming in. what have u.s. officials told you about this alleged plot to bomb your embassy here in washington?

>> first of all, we very much aploud the success of american intelligence and law enforcement officials in forwarding this plot. i wouldn't want to jeopardize their investigation, but we are in close communication. >> was it a serious plot? just a little talk? were there actual plans to go to your embassy and blow it up? >> you can never underestimate the iranian regime. killing american soldiers in iraq whose president appeared before the general assembly a month after 9/11 and blamed the united states for destroying the twin towers, has killed american servicemen in saudi arabia. this has the regime that supports hamas and killed hundreds of israelis through suicide bombers. we can never be anything but village lent. >> was it just talk or was there

an actual blueprint? how serious was this alleged attempt to blow up the embassy? >> we talk it very seriously. we take the steps in accordance with that seriousness. we are always on alert. very village lent here in washington as we are in israeli again, these thousands of iranian supplied rockets are aimed at our neighborhoods and homes. >> because the iranian government flatly denies these allegations. they've accused of obama administration of fabricating all of this and say there's no truth to any of it. >> just like they denied blowinging up the israeli embassy and jewish community center in buenos aires, they're always going to deny it. but we know that iran is the world's leading supporter of terror and we have to take everything seriously. when iranian leaders say they're going to wipe israel off the map, they're developing nuclear power, we have to take it seriously. they're doing this without nuclear weapons. >> so, the obama administration is trying to ratchet up

sanctions against the iranian government. what is the israeli government doing in the aftermath? >> we support the president's plan on sanctions. the sanctions have taken a big chunk out of the iranian economy. we haven't seen the sanctions haven't dampened the leader's appetite for power and our position and the position of the united states of america, is that all options are on the table. >> including the military options? >> all options are on the table and we want people in tehran who are trying to build nuclear weapons, we want them to believe us. >> sanctions really, let's be honest, haven't really stopped the iranians. >> they've taken a big chunk out of the economy, currency. they're causing them real pain. we want them to see it's effectively deterring them either from sponsoring terror and pursuining nuclear beps. >> a huge story in israel, this

prisoner exchange between your government, the government of benjamin netanyahu and hamas. prime minister netanyahu was negotiating for the release of a soldier and you're about to release a thousand or so palestinian prisoners in change for shahlite? >> it's not just israel. it's the united states, european union, the international community considered hamas to be a terrorist negotiation. they're negotiating through the good offices of the egyptians and germans. it's a tough call. he is a soldier, in israel, we have a citizen's army. we've had kids in the ar himy i've had three. he's like a son to each and every one of us. they have to know when we send them into battle, if god forbid, they fall captive, israel's

going to do everything they can to get them back. it's a hard call. we know we're taking a terrible risk, but we know we have a contract with our soldiers that we're going to do the utmost to get them back. >> but some of these prisoners you're about a release have blood on their hands. they're convicted of killing israelis and terrorist actions. the families of those fivictims are going to be up et about this releasing these prisoners? >> undoubtedly. it's a hard call. it was a brave call, a strong call. he has to go face those families. not an easy thing to do, but he has to do this -- >> doesn't this encourage the taking of more soldiers to plan for more of these kinds of swaps? >> there have been attempts to kidnap israelis over the course of many decades now. they're always trying and we have to be very aware and sensitive to it and our soldiers and civilians are all instructed to take the necessary precautions. those they've tried many, many times.

again, we live in a tough nashd and our soldiers have to know when they go to fight for us, we're going to be right behind them. >> when is this going to happen? >> the next few days. we hope to have him home soon, reunited with his family. >> and these palestinian prisoners, they would go to gaza? >> some would be sent abroad. >> that's the deal. >> this wouldn't be the first time you've had a lopsided slop like this. >> it's lopsided because we value human life. we care about our citizens, certainly about our soldiers, our children. that's what distinguishes us from the terrorists. >> thanks for coming in. >> as always. a congratulatory mess from the man who replaced osama bin laden. stand by. the postal service is critical to our economy--

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plot to kill the ambassador. >> i think we need to explore whether there are other plots in other countries. >> actively exploring other -- >> well, i do know that intelligence indicates that there may well be problems elsewhere. i think we need to look at that. >> is there any specific -- >> can't go into it. >> is there -- >> i'm not saying any of that. not saying that. all i'm saying, this is a very unusual thing. and because it's unusual, because it's quds force, because it's revolutionary guard, two agencies very high on the hierchy of the iranian government, you've got to think if they're going after a saudi ambassador here, what about a saudi ambassador there or israeli ambassador there or an

american ambassador, and so, i think that we should all be alert to that. but i'm not saying there is a broader plot. i'm just saying we need to look that. at that. >> possibilities against the united states towards its these -- iran, saudi arabia, play r ring out of fear. sfl clearly, the target was the saudi ambassador here, so you can say, well, why not the saudi ambassador somewhere else? i can't answer that. it may well be to say look, united states, we can do this right in your midst. i don't know. supply simply is what it is. >> what do you think the u.s. response should be beyond diplomatic sanctions, should -- >> i'll tell you this. i think from what i heard and it's up to the administration to give you the particulars. i can't.

but i think there is already various responses taking place. diplomatically, through treasury and i think the administration has moved very rapidly. >> senator, is a military response appropriate at this point? >> oh, i don't think so. no. i don't believe it is. i think the administration is really taking some strong actions with treasury. diplomatically and we will see what fruit those bear in the coming weeks. >> and there's no indication from them that they are considering military aspect response? >> no, none that was mentioned. okay? thank you. >> there she is, dianne feinstein. she just emerged from a meeting with obama administration officials on this plot to kill in washington. much more of the coverage right after this. [ charles ] when you can make a person smile

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is polling revealing that fewer americans favor the death penalty over a life sentence that is punishment for a murder charge. according to our new cnn poll, 48% now say that the death penalty is appropriate, compared to 53% back in 2009. 56% in 2005. let's go back to jack for the cafferty file. >> is it time for eric holder to

resign over the fast and furious scandal? obama ds cabinet and staff seem to be filled with people with their own political and agendas, and the list goes on. the president would be better served taking this opportunity to clean up his act. holder has found more than enough to win the race towards the door. danny in sacramento writes, get real. where robber barons don't go to jail, do you really think that the u.s. attorney general is going to take the fall for a messed up gun running? either holder is incompetent or he is lying and neither of these defenses rise higher than a hill of beans post iraq. how many george w. bush administration went to the slammer for b.s.ing us into that adventure? tammy writes, it's his watch. holder is responsible.

how does something like that happen and the man is clueless? holder should be fired. dan in pennsylvania writes, it's often said that justice is lying. that ranks up there with someone claiming to be patriotic in order for someone to get out of trouble. perhaps it's time for holder to resign and be replaced with an attorney general ready to resign. the fact that weapons were used for various purposes would have been no surprise to holder and company and surely must have been seen as an accept bable ri. why not put some out there that we can track for the purpose of taking the war on drugs and cartels to the next level. and cliff writes, he ought to resign, right after cheney goes to jail. you want to read more on this, go to my blog, cnn.com/cafferty file. or through our posts on "the situation room" facebook page. >> see you tomorrow, jack.

desperate call to 911 for help from a corn maze. je jeanne moos is next. i'm not a number. i'm not a line item on a budget. and i'm definitely not a pushover. but i am a voter. so washington... before you even think about cutting my medicare and social security benefits... here's a number you should remember. 50 million. we are 50 million seniors who earned our benefits... and you will be hearing from us... today and on election day. ♪

panic and desperation in a sea of corn.

here's cnn's jeanne moos. >> reporter: you're lost in a giant cornfield maze. you don't know which way to turn. darkness is falling. who you going to call? 911. you would think that she was being stalked by the corn. a massachusetts woman, her husband and two kids got lost and called danver's police an hour after the 6:00 p.m. closing time at the connor's farm maze and we all know from the movies how spooky cornfields can get. especially after dark. when you fall into the clutches of demonic corn, actually, the killer corn wasn't attacking but -- >> the mosquitos are eating us alive. >> reporter: some folks celebrate getting lost.

♪ getting lost is the greatest part ♪ >> reporter: oh, yeah snl. >> we thought this would be fun. instead, it's a nightmare. >> can i talk to your husband? >> reporter: the dispatcher told the man to yell at the can nine unit that was there to look for th them. >> say hello k-9. >> reporter: he even repeated literally. >> say hello k-9. >> hello k-9. >> reporter: hello k-9. it took a total of at least ten "hello k-9s". >> keep going, sir. gives you something to do. >> reporter: finally towards the end of the 7 1/2 minute call -- >> we see a lyle. >> reporter: the k-9 unit officer found them 25 feet from the